Apparatus for feeding individual bearings from a stack of bearings



March 2, 1954 T. R. BRINK ET AL 2,670,858

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING INDIVIDUAL BEARINGS FROM A sTAcx oF BEARINGS 4 Sheets-Sheet l Original Filed Dec. 29, 1948 i8 i l vil? 1 ii L L g l L l LVKLL L l LA; l 7.), v e g w www' March 2, l954 T. R. BRINK ET AL 2,670,858

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING INDIVIDUAL BEARINGS FROM A STACK OF BEARINGS 29, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Dec.

March 2, 1954 T. R. BRINK ET AL 2,670,858 APPARATUS FOR FEEDING INDIVIDUAL BEARINGS FROM A STACK OF BEARINGS Original Filed Dea. 29, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 2,670,858 S BEARINGS March 2, 1954 T. R. BRlNK ET AL APPARATUS FOR FEEDING INDIVIDU FROM A STACK 0F BEARI Original Filed Dec. 29, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 A y W J iwf@ V MZ i 6P D@ N W Patented Mar. 2, 1954 APPARATUS FOR FEED `Gr INDIVIDUAL BEARINGS .FROM A STACK -F BEARINGS- `Theodore R. Brink, Michigan City, Ind., and -Georgedl Beaudry Land John Langdon, `Chiicago, Ill., vassignors to I nier-national Harvester Gumpany, .a .corporation of New Jersey vOriginal application December '29, 1948, Serial No.

67,4848. 'Divided `and thi s application January 19, 1951, Serial No. 206,898

3 Claims.

This invention relates to anew and improved apparatus for removingindividual bearings from .astack of bearings.

The present invention isa division ofqour pending patent application entitled Bal1 Bearing bearings and wherein the remaining bearings in i the stack are positively held in an `elevated position during the `removal of the lowermost bearing.

Another .and further important object of. this invention .is to supply a positive feeding means for bearings from a vertically .disposed stack of bearings without upsetting the stack or permitting any of the bearings .in the stack to drop down .into the path of movement of the lowermost bearing being removed.

`Other and further important objects of this invention will become apparent from the disclosures in the following specication and accompanying drawing, in `which: y

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the feeding. mechanism for delivering individual bearings 'from a stack of bearings.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the .device 'as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 isan enlarged view of a portion of the feedingv mechanism as shown in Fig. 1 and with the feeding mechanism in a shifted position.

Figure 4 is an end elevational view of the feeding mechanism taken on the line 4- 4 of Fig. 2.

Figure 5 is a top plan view of the bearing magazine employed -on the apparatus ofthis invention. As shown in the drawings:

A bearing magazine I9 is @adapted toreceive Iand maintain a substantially vertical stack 2B of bearings 22. A feeding mechanism 2| is adapted to slide the bottom bearing of the vertical stack without upsetting the other bearings in the stack and pushing it to a ball bearing treating machine such as a washing machine or the like.

The feeding mechanism 2l consists of a carrying structure 92. The carrying structure 92 extends beneath the magazine I9 and thus also beneath the vertical column 20 of bearings 22 to be washed. A vertical movable table or the like 93 is adapted in certain instances to supportthev f, erations of the feeding mechanism vertical column-20 of bearings 22. The member 93 has a downwardly extending shaft or-piston member 94 journallymounted in the carrying structure 92 and, as best shown `in Fig. 3, is provided with a roller .95 at :its lower end adapted to be engaged by a cam member 99. The cam 98 is mounted for rotation on a shaft 91 supported 'by bearing brackets 98 depending from the carrying structure 92. In the position shown in Fig. 3, the member 93 is, in fact, supporting the column 20 of bearings 22 because the high surface of the ycam 99 has pushed the pist-on 9.4 upwardly its maximum distance. The .shaft 91 in l`addition to carrying the cam 96 :also supports a4 pulley sheave 99 which driven by a pulley belt i from .some .external .source of power. Operation of the feeding mechanism thus depends upon rotation of the shaft 91 and thus also the cam 96 which controls the cycleof opelements. The pulley 99 is maintained in position by means' of end thrust collars 10| and I2 also mounted on the shaft 93'. An arm |63 is mounted on the shaft 91for simultaneous rotation therewith.

A connecting link I 94 joins the outer end of the arm ID3 at (95 and at its other end is connected at IDB to a ldovvnwardly depending arm Ill?. The :depending arm I9? is attached to the under side of a 'laterally sliding member |98 which is mountedfor sliding movement .beneath a V.pair of spaced ribs m9 and III?. The slide member |08 has .mounted thereon a block member I II carrying a vertical shank member H2 of a forwardly extending fork-.like member II3. The shank member II.2 .is adjustably locked in the block II-I bymeans of vertical yadjusting screw H4 and a' horizontally `disposed set or locking screw H5. Thefork I I3' is composed of a plurality of .spaced ngers .I I6. lThe upper portion of the table member93 fisprovided with a plurality of spaced vertical-.slots or notches I I1 in and through which fork fingers I lamay freely pass.

The vverticalcolumn oi bearings, as yshownin Figs. ..2 `,and 4 issupported on the fork member H9, and as especially'viewed .in Fig. 2 the ends ofthe fingers IIE :are shown engaging the lower bearing in the stack of bearings 22 and pushing it along a receiving platform which in this instance is in the form of the track members 21 and 28 extending through a ball bearing treating machine or the like. If the fork member II3 were directly withdrawn, the column of bearings 22 would similarly be moved rearwardly with the fork member IIS and succeeding feeding of individual bearings from the bottom of a stack o1' bearings would be prevented. Thus in order to accomplish withdrawal of the fork member H3 when shifting the position of the stack 2n of bearings 22 within the magazine I9, the table member 93 asshown in Fig. 3 is moved upwardly so that the fingers HS of the feeding fork slide within the vertical slots H1 and the member 93 continues its upward movement so that the top surface thereof is slightly above the top surface of the fork member H3. At this point, the table member 93 assumes the load of the vertical column of bearings and the fork member may be readily withdrawn without affecting the stability of the stack 20 of bearings 22.

Fig. 3 shows the fork member removed from its telescoping position within the table member 93. The cam 9G is shaped in such a manner that the table moves downwardly from its high position as shown in Fig. 3 to its lowermost position as shown in Fig. 2 prior to forward movement of the slide member |08. Immediately thereafter the slide member |08 and the feeding fork H3 move forwardly against the side of the lowermost bearing in the column 20 of bearings 22 pushing it onto the tracks 2'! and 28 of fixed height, and inasmuch as the upper level of the fork H3 is substantially identical with the upper level of the lowermost bearing, there is no dropping of the stack of bearings when the one bearing at the bottom of the stack is moved into the bearing treating machine. The cycle of operations is then repeated with the table member 93 moving upwardly to support the column of bearings during that time when the feeding fork H3 is withdrawn to effect a succeeding feeding of bearings into the bearing treating machine.

As best shown in Fig. 5, the magazine I9 may be adjusted to accommodate various diameters of bearings. The magazine I9 consists of a supporting frame H8. The frame member includes spaced vertically disposed flange members H9 and |20 for supporting a right and left-hand screw |2|. The screw |2| carries the magazine guide walls |22 and |23 which are angularly disposed in a substantially V-shape for easy insertion of bearings. The wall members |22 and |23 threadedly engage the screw |2| on different portions thereof so that upon rotation of the screw |2| by a knurled hand wheel |24, walls |22 and |23 are moved toward or away from each other as desired. The dash line positions ofthe walls |22 and |23 indicate the adjustment of the magazine for relatively small diameter bearings.

The apparatus of this invention is thus capable of efficiently removing the lowermost bearing from a vertical stack of bearings without in any way interfering with the bearings above the lowermost bearing being removed. Further with the apparatus employed herein there is no possibility of the upper bearings in a vertical stack of bearings coming down and interfering with the removal of the lowermost bearing because they are temporarily lifted and held out of position during the period of time of removal of the lowermost bearing. The apparatus of this invention may be effectively used with a ball bearing washing machine such as shown in our parent application mentioned above and/or with any other of numerous bearing treating machines. Further it is not intended that the device of this invention be limited to the removal of individual bearings from a stack of bearings but it is contemplated that any article which may be stacked and individually removed would come within the scope of this invention. Alternative articles may be a plurality of disks wherein the lowermost disk is desired to be removed individually from a stack of such disks without disturbing the remainder of the stack.

Numerous details of construction may be varied throughout a wide range without departing from the principles disclosed herein, and we therefore do not propose limiting the patent granted hereon otherwise than as necessitated by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A device for singly and successively feeding bearings from a vertically disposed stack of bearings comprsing a supporting structure, a table member having a downwardly depending piston journaled for vertical reciprocation in said supporting Structure, a driven shaft carried on said supporting structure, a cam mounted on said driven shaft, a cam follower on the lower end of the depending piston of said table member, whereby the cam follower riding on the cam causes a raising or lowering of the table member carrying a vertically disposed stack of bearings, a bearing receiving platform disposed at a fixed height with respect to said supporting structure and positioned adjacent said table member, bearing pushing means slidably carried on said supporting structure and positioned adjacent said table member opposite said receiving platform, and means for moving said bearing pushing means across said table member to engage and push out a single bearing from beneath the stack of bearings, said bearing pushing means comprising a plurality of spaced, parallel, fork fingers, said table member having a plurality of vertically disposed slots through which the bearing pushing'fingers may readily pass.

2. A device as set forth in claim l in which the fork fingers are disposed at a level substantially equal to the receiving platform.

3. A device as set forth in claim 2 in which the means for moving the bearing pushing means comprises a driving linkage from said driven shaft.

THEODORE R. BRINK. GEORGE D. BEAUDRY. JOHN T. LONGDON.

References Cited in the fil of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

